


Learning to overcome your trauma, Ft. Sonic the Hedgehog

by FolkPunkDruid



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (2020), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: ADHD Sonic, Comedy, F/M, Fluff, Found Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Sonic has ADHD sorry i dont make the rules, all media types fandom tag bc i take bits of canon from other sonic stuff, as a treat, food as a plot device, hes earned it, i want to see him grow up healthy, i want to tell my friends and neighbors about him, i will protect him, its all fluff, its what my boy deserves, just very sweet and domestic, my boy crazy carl is here now! ch3 if ur here for him, no seriously the first three chapters use food as a plot device i didnt mean to do that, only tagged maddie/tom bc theyre sonic's parents and they love each other, sonic can have a little mcdonalds, sorry shippers this isnt gonna be romantic, they all! love each other!!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-19
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:28:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22794004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FolkPunkDruid/pseuds/FolkPunkDruid
Summary: bc 2020 is the year of growth babes!A bunch of interconnected ficlets and one-shots about Sonic adapting to life in Green Hills after the events of the movie, because there aren't enough fluff fics on here and i have a stupid amount of ideasalso yeah i changed the title from "Learning to break down your emotional walls, Ft. Sonic the Hedgehog", i thought this was more fitting.
Relationships: Maddie Wachowski/Tom Wachowski, Sonic the Hedgehog & Maddie Wachowski, Sonic the Hedgehog & Tom Wachowski
Comments: 43
Kudos: 421





	1. Sonic goes to Maccas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sonic gets what every kid wants... And it's not a black coffee
> 
> ...
> 
> Look, what do you want from me? It does what it says on the tin
> 
> Word Count: 661  
> Date posted: 2020-02-19 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I havent written anything in two years, my heart is so full of love for movie sonic. I never thought I'd love movie sonic more than sonic in any other media, but here we are. Thank u movie sonic for my life, my sweet baby boy, my beautiful blue son.

“McDonalds! McDonalds! McDonalds!” Sonic chanted.

Tom sighed. He should have realised what he was getting into when he took a teenage alien somewhere he’d only heard of in passing. Sonic had an entire decade’s worth of anticipation for McDonalds.

His wife just chuckled from the seat beside him, enjoying the entire show immensely. 

The sheriff pulled into the drive through of Green Hills’ only McDonalds, examining the menu for a moment. Without considering all the running he did, Sonic needed a shockingly high calorie count for someone so small. Tom had to make sure the kid was eating properly after years of poor nutrition. 

Sonic had leapt out of his seat, hands and face pressed against the glass of the window as he bounced on the balls of his feet in excitement. 

Tom sighed as he looked at him in the mirror. Just this once, he wouldn’t tell him off for taking off his seatbelt. 

No, that would be later. 

Once he was full of greasy fries.

“Alright, do you wanna order yourself?” Maddie asked, turning back to Sonic with a kind smile.

The boy nodded rapidly, still bouncing. His eyes were wide and full of excitement as he glanced back at Maddie and Tom before focusing on the menu.

Tom quickly wound down the window for him before Sonic began trying to order a meal through the glass. 

“Can I get a fuckin’ uhhhhh…”

“Language,” Tom and Maddie chided in unison.

The blue hedgehog pouted at them for a moment before continuing to order. “Can I get a big box of nuggets and a large fry, and can I get an, uhhh... large coke? Oh! And a-”

~~~~~

“Urgh,” Sonic groaned, resting a hand on his full belly. He had bitten off more than he could chew. Literally. Tom and Maddie had said he needed to eat lots if he wanted to be healthy, but he couldn’t eat half of what he ordered.

“I suppose you’re still not used to eating so much.” Maddie said, patting him on the shoulder comfortingly.

“Or so often,” the hedgehog grumbled.

Maddie and Tom shared a look.

Sonic groaned internally. Why did they keep doing that whenever he talked about his life on Earth? It wasn’t weird to break into trash cans behind the local restaurants, or watch movies through other people’s windows, or to talk constantly because he finally, finally has someone to actually talk to.

Right?

“Sonic…” Maddie began.

The hedgehog’s snout wrinkled in displeasure. Great, another discussion about unhealthy habits. “Pretzel Laaaadyyyy,” he whined.

Tom sat down on his other side. “What did you eat? Before you moved in with us?”

His ears flattened against his head, and the usually bubbly, excitable boy seemed to wilt. He knew they wouldn’t like the answer. “Leftovers out of trash cans, or stuff that was about to be thrown out.” He muttered. “Sometimes I got lucky and found coupons for a free pizza, or a couple dollars off a burger so I could use street change to buy it, or the fruit store was about to throw out some fruit that wasn’t great anymore. It was still edible!” He defended himself, deciding not to mention his occasional fruit theft.

Tom and Maddie were quiet. 

“... I’ve had McDonalds before, but… Never fresh. It was always cold and gross. And I never got to pick what I wanted. And I’ve never gone without food, but… I took what I needed.” He wrung his hands nervously, worrying about worrying the two people he was closest to.

The two humans hugged him close, careful to not be poked by his quills. 

They got poked anyway.

It didn’t matter. Sonic was more important. 

“It’s okay,” Maddie soothed, voice soft and comforting. “You don’t have to do that anymore. Anytime you’re hungry, just help yourself to the fridge, or ask us for something. We’ll make sure you have plenty to eat. You can have fruit and vegetables and whatever else you want.”

Sonic hugged them back, sniffling a little.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow that got kinda sad oops


	2. In Which The Author Dunks On Zebra Cakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just an average Saturday morning in the Wachowski household  
> Word Count: 1773  
> Date Posted: 2020-03-01

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank u everyone who commented! Esp those that said Sonic is babey and should get hugs. Its what he deserves,,, in this house we love and appreciate the baby boy. Sonic is my gremlin son and i love him so much,
> 
> I worked stupid hard on this one so please appreciate it! thank u all for motivating me with ur kind comments and kudos!

It was an ordinary Saturday morning. Maddie, always the early riser, had already woken up and done her yoga, amongst several other things. Tom had only just dragged himself out of bed to the dining room for breakfast. 

With Sonic it was usually a roll of the dice if he woke up early or not. He liked to sleep in, and he liked to stay up late, but he also had the old habit of being up early before everyone else that he was yet to fully break. 

Today, he was at the table, slopping a frankly ridiculous amount of peanut butter and jam on his toast.

The local carpenter had been kind enough to make a taller chair similar to the others the Wachowskis owned, so that Sonic sat at a more comfortable height during mealtimes.

It probably helped that Maddie had a favour to call in with her. 

The little blue alien looked up from his breakfast when Tom walked in, a mischievous grin making its way onto his face and eyes narrowing at his target. “Well you’re up early,” he remarked cheekily. “It’s only eight-thirty! Wow, is that a new record for days off?”

“Alright, lay off, Sonic,” Tom said, smiling despite himself as he popped some bread in the toaster.

Sonic childishly stuck his tongue out at him.

Tom made a face in return as he pulled the butter out of the fridge.

Soon, the toast was cooked and buttered up. Tom settled at the table opposite Sonic, and started munching as he browsed the news on his phone.

“Why are you up so early, though?” Sonic asked, muffled through a mouthful of toast absolutely dripping with jam. 

“I thought we could do something fun today, maybe. Maybe use that Olive Garden gift card and get lunch,” he replied, not looking up. “And please don’t talk with your mouth full.”

“You can’t prove I was doing that! You’re not even looking at me!”

“You weren’t talking with your mouth full?”

“No, I was.”

Maddie laughed.

They lapsed into a comfortable silence as all three of them continued eating.

“When is your birthday?” Tom suddenly asked.

The question came out of nowhere, blindsiding Sonic. He chewed his toast thoughtfully for a moment, thinking over the question. 

“I’m not sure what it is on Earth actually. The calendar is really different. Mobius only has 9 months in a year, if I remember right.” 

At Tom and Maddie’s confused looks, he swallowed the bite of breakfast he’d just taken. “Oh yeah. I think I forgot to mention that’s the name of the world I’m from, though I never really saw much of it beyond the island where I lived.”

A small chorus of understanding “ohhh”s came from the humans. 

“Well, if you don’t know… Instead we can celebrate the day you came to Earth, or the day we met, if you want.” Maddie said.

Sonic stood up from his chair at the table, bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet. “Ooh! The second one! Let’s celebrate that one!” Sonic answered excitedly.

His smile was infectious. Soon, Tom and Maddie were smiling along. 

Tom grinned. “Well, it’s a couple months away but we could start planning now. You haven’t celebrated your birthday with anyone since you’ve come to Earth, right? We’ll make it special!”

The little blue alien cheered, punching the air in excitement. “Really? Yes! You’re the best!”

Maddie laughed at his enthusiasm. When Sonic’s chair began to topple from his energetic movements, she quickly reached out a hand to steady it. “Careful!”

After Sonic had a few moments to recover from his close call, Maddie spoke up.

“Hey, what’s your favourite flavour of cake?”

Sonic cocked his head to the side in thought. “You mean the little stripy ones? I didn’t know there was more than one flavour…” He mused, looking down at the table for a moment, snout wrinkled in confusion.

“No, Sonic, those are Zebra Cakes. They’re terrible,” Tom laughed.

Maddie gently smacked his arm. “No they’re not!” She gasped theatrically, pretending to be offended. 

“Maddie, they suck.”

Before Maddie could argue back, Sonic jumped in. “They’re called cakes, though.”

“They’re not proper cakes. It’s like calling tomatoes a fruit. It’s technically true, but everyone will be mad about it,” answered Tom.

“Wait, are tomatoes fruit?” The blue hedgehog’s expression was somewhere between disgusted, shocked, and horrified. 

Maddie patted the slack-jawed hedgehog on the back, careful to not poke herself on his spines. “Sorry, Sonic. You can never unlearn that now.” 

Shaking his head as if to forget the horrible truth he’d just uncovered, Sonic closed his mouth.

“Well, if Zebra Cakes don’t count, then… I guess I’ve never had cake before.”

Now it was their turn to gape at him. 

“Tom-”

“Sonic! I can’t believe you’ve never had cake! Do you want to make some?”

The hedgehog’s eyes seemed to sparkle in excitement. “Yes! Let’s make cake!”

“Olive Garden can wait!” Tom cheered.

~~~~~

A short trip to the store later, they had everything they needed for the cake. After much agonizing over which flavour to choose, Sonic had finally settled on a classic mud cake mix with the reassurance that they could come back and try to make other kinds of cake another day.

Maddie had refused to bake, saying something about “being banned after the Wax Paper Incident”

Tom paced around the small kitchen, listing off preparations on his fingers. “Alright, we have the oven preheated, we have the mixing bowl ready, we ha-”

Sonic dumped the entire packet of cake mix into the mixing bowl in one quick motion, sending up clouds of chocolate powder. He sneezed, blinking in confusion for a moment.

The click of Maddie’s phone camera came from outside the kitchen, but neither of the boys noticed.

“-aaaaaand you’re not supposed to dump the entire thing in,” Tom finished, exasperated.

“But the box said to put it in the mixing bowl!” He complained, pouting.

“You’re supposed to pour it so it doesn’t go everywhere. Here, I’ll get a bowl for the icing so we can do it together.”

Sonic rubbed some of the chocolate powder off his face, licking it off his hand as he listened. “Together?”

“Yeah! Like this.” Tom stood behind Sonic, putting his hands over the blue hedgehog’s and helped him pour the powdery mix into the second bowl, making sure none of it fell out. 

“Oh.”

Tom continued to show the little hedgehog how to crack the eggshells, demonstrating the proper technique for him.

“See, you have to tap it on the edge of the bowl, but only enough to break the shell a little. And you have to be careful not to get bits of eggshell in there,” he said gently.

Sonic tried cracking open the egg on the rim of the bowl gently, frowning when nothing happened. He tried again, but this time with too much force. The shell split open, messily dumping the yolk and liquidy whites on top of the cake mix, along with several fragments of eggshell.

“Oops. Sorry.” Sonic’s ears flattened against his head. He fidgeted with his hands, nervous, and looked anywhere but Tom.

Tom’s brows furrowed. He’d only known Sonic for a couple of weeks, but he knew that whenever Sonic got uncharacteristically quiet that something was bothering him.

“What’s up, kiddo?” he asked, lowering himself to be more level with Sonic. It wouldn’t do to make him feel more nervous if he wanted the hedgehog to open up to him. 

Picking at his threadbare gloves, he mumbled “...‘M sorry. I didn’t mean to mess up.”

“Why are you worried about it, though?” Tom asked gently, probing for more information. 

The blue boy shrugged. “I… jus’ don’t want you to not like me, I guess. I’ve never really had anyone close to me before. I don’t... wanna mess this up.” He admitted quietly, finally looking up at Tom with big, anxious eyes.

Sighing, Tom began picking bits of shell out of the cake mix. “It’s okay, Sonic,” he reassured. “Mistakes happen. It’s how we learn. It’s only human. Uh, or in your case, alien hedgehog?” he said with a grin.

He smiled softly for a moment at Tom’s terrible joke, still full of apprehension. 

Picking out the last few fragments, he wiped his hands on a nearby cloth and rested one on his shoulder. “Anyway, it’s alright. Neither of us are going anywhere. We all make mistakes, and it’s okay to mess up. Okay?”

He nodded, relief filling his big green eyes. “Okay.” He said softly, a weak smile beginning to creep onto his face.

Smiling back, Tom added the rest of the ingredients and started mixing the batter up. “Feeling better?”

Sonic nodded with a smile. “Thanks.”

“Anytime, kiddo.” Tom paused his mixing to ruffle Sonic’s head fur affectionately, laughing when the hedgehog complained about his “hair” getting messed up.

“Okay, so now we have to mix everything together,” Tom demonstrated, tilting the bowl towards Sonic so he could see better. “See, the trick is to make sure there’s no pockets of powder left in there. Some people use a machine to mix it, but then it’s harder to control and you’re more likely to miss some of the powder or get batter everywhere.”

The hedgehog ‘Ohhh’ed in understanding. “Can I have a go?”

“Alright, but you better not mix too fast. I REALLY don’t want to clean any chocolate off the ceiling.” 

With a dramatic salute, Sonic took the bowl and started mixing. With his speed, the mix was finished in record time and after a check from Tom, poured into the cake mold and put in the oven.

“Do you want to lick the spatula?”

Eyes wide and full of excitement, the little hedgehog nearly snatched the spatula from Tom’s hand, immediately putting as much of it in his mouth as he could at once. 

Tom laughed at his enthusiasm, watching as Sonic enjoyed the chocolatey rewards for his baking efforts. 

“Why didn’t we just eat the mix? It’s so good!” He paused to jokingly complain, grinning when it made Tom laugh even more.

Licking up the last bits of chocolate, Sonic put the spatula in the sink to wash up later. “Y’know, you know a lot more about baking than I thought you would.” 

“Yeah, my mum taught me how. We used to bake together a lot.” Tom smiled fondly at the memory. 

“D’you think… I could bake with her some day? This was fun.”

Tom grinned at Sonic’s hopeful face, ruffling his soft head fluff with his free hand. “Of course, kid.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dont ask me about the maths i did for the mobian calendar  
> WOW this is way longer than the other ones
> 
> im thinkin of makin a small discord server for ppl to hang out n talk about the baby boy and all the found family fluff bc i am thriving. Also, it might help keep me motivated to write. Tell me what yall think, should I?


	3. Urban Yeti, except instead of a Yeti it’s a Hedgehog

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sonic reminisces on his life before Robotnik came to Green Hills, and gives someone a long-overdue apology
> 
> Word Count: 1582  
> Date Posted: 2020-04-07

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm very good at titles  
> I took a break from this when school got really tough and I moved onto other hyperfixations for about a month but I'm back for a little while. Not sure when the next ficlet will be but I have a good one planned out! so hopefully I'll feel like writing soon but dont count on it! i love u all
> 
> Also i WILL explain the mobian calendar maths but not right now I'm tired and i dont feel like copy+pasting it

Sonic wouldn’t have said his life was especially interesting. In fact, he considered himself pretty normal. As normal as a blue, anthropomorphic hedgehog with the ability to outrace most cars could be, at least. 

The town of Green Hills was very peaceful. His town, even if the locals didn’t know he existed. 

Well, except for Crazy Carl. 

Despite what others would have thought if they knew he existed, he liked the town’s local “conspiracy theorist”. Sometimes it was better to have someone to spend time with, even if they were trying to catch you, rather than have no one.

It made him feel less lonely. A little. 

“That’s not sad,” Sonic mumbled to himself. “I have friends! They just don’t know I’m there.” He shoved down the thoughts before he started spiralling.

With a deep breath, a run-up and a leap, he vaulted the chainlink fence behind the grocery and, as quick as he could, rushed into the store.

“Besides, keeping myself hidden’s for my own safety. You see how they treat aliens in movies, Sonic. Now, only take what I need.” He glanced around as he ran, only showing up on the store’s security cameras as a vaguely hedgehog-shaped blur.

“Apples, yes. Ooh! They have cantaloupe!” He grabbed the fruits he named, dumping them into one of the wicker baskets the store provided without slowing down. He’d return it later.

Much sooner than it would have taken anyone else, he’d grabbed food and snacks to last him several days. Meat didn’t keep in his cave, so he had grabbed nuts and other sources of protein.

He glanced up at the clock. “Three seconds, not bad,” he grinned as he rushed beyond where the camera could see him and into the bushes behind the fence. All it would get is a couple of blurred frames, anyway.

An angered shout rang through the air as the storeowner realised he’d been robbed.

“Sorry, Carl!” Sonic mock-saluted with the arm not carrying his food. “I’ll pay you back another time!”

As the blue blur ran back to his cave, he wondered if Carl would have been trying to prove the existence of “The Blue Devil” all these years if he’d never taken food from Green Hill’s small grocery store.

Carl would have never gotten blurry footage of Sonic, or tried to discover what was taking his produce. He probably never would have tried to track Sonic to the woods, or started his crusade to prove he wasn’t going mad.

The blue hedgehog rushed off to his cave, gently putting the food to the side of his cave and biting into one of the apples he’d grabbed.

“And now, we wait for tonight. I wonder how Carl will try to trap me this time?” He idly wondered, munching on the sweet fruit.

~~~~~

Everything was fuzzy.

After Robotnik shot him to the ground and he slammed into the asphalt, Sonic just laid there. 

His body ached. 

Everything was muddled and indistinct. He could hear voices, but couldn’t quite make them out. He kept lying on the ground, exhausted after days (years, really, if he let himself think about it,) of running.

People were yelling, he thought. Not sure what about.

“And that’s our Blue Devil!” Roared Carl, revving a chainsaw, determined to defend the local menace.

Sonic’s ear twitched as he made out the paranoid shopkeeper’s words.

After all these years of theft and teasing, Carl would have been perfectly justified in not lifting a finger to help him, and… he was not only helping, but protecting him.

If he weren’t on the fringes of consciousness, facedown on the pavement, he would have tried to hug him in gratitude. Or if Carl didn’t like hugs, maybe a a very cool and manly high-five. 

The blue hedgehog fought against the desire just lie down and rest his aching body. He had to get up and fight. For his town.

~~~~~

Well, this was awkward.

Sonic hesitated on the doorstep of Carl's house, a small plastic container in his hands. 

It was… strange, he decided was the right word. Strange after all this time for everyone to know that Carl was right. 

Strange for Carl to know exactly who was stealing his produce all these years.

In his defense, Sonic was just trying to keep himself from malnutrition. It did work, sort of. He probably could have used some more food. 

He paused a moment longer before gently rapping his knuckles on the solid door. 

After a few moments, the door slid open with a click. Carl looked around, not seeing the short blue hedgehog immediately.

“Um. Hi,” Sonic said, waving hesitantly and smiling nervously. 

Carl looked down, surprise quickly splashing across his face before his brow creased in thought, staring at the hedgehog for a few moments. 

“Uh,” The blue boy opened the lid of the container. “I made cake and uh. Tom and Maddie suggested I should apologize. So I brought cake.” Carl didn’t need to know that they suggested it a month ago.

And that he hadn’t done it then because he felt awkward and unsure about the conversation that would need to be had.

At least now he could lessen the tension with some cake.

The scruffy man in the doorframe raised his eyebrows in surprise. Soon, Sonic was being welcomed inside and being offered a plush seat in front of a small coffee table. He sat down nervously as Carl took the tupperware of cake to another room.

He sat patiently. Or, patiently by his standards. Which meant in half a minute he was on his feet and exploring the small room he had been left in.

It was a modest little space. Cozy, with those large comfortable chairs that looked like an old couch, but made for one person. Across from the couch-chairs and coffee table was one of those small box tvs that Sonic had only ever seen in movies. 

_‘Those actually exist?’_

Carl’s footsteps brought him out of his reverie, and he dashed to his seat, giving the town’s grocer a sheepish grin. “Um. I wasn’t trying to be rude or anything. I-I didn’t know those kinds of tvs were real.”

The gruff old man chuckled, setting down two small plates of cake, a teacup, and a mug before settling in one of the couch-chairs himself. “It’s alright. Come now, before your drink gets cold.”

Sonic peeked curiously at the brownish liquid that Carl had poured into the mug set in front of him, unsure if it was tea or something else he thought was gross.

“Go ahead, it’s hot chocolate.”

Perking up, Sonic immediately wrapped his hands around the mug, picking it up and taking a deep swig before his eyes widened in surprise and he roughly set down his mug. “Ow. I think I burnt my tongue.”

Carl laughed. “Too fast for your own good, eh?”

He shrugged, smiling cheekily as he helped himself to a forkful of cake. “You know me, always going a mile a minute.”

Then Sonic remembered why he was here. Swallowing his mouthful, the blue alien looked down at his lap. He idly played with his fingers as he tried to come up with the words.

“Look, I… I’m sorry. I’m sorry for stealing the food in your shop for so long. I just didn’t- I- Ugh, words.” he mumbled to himself. “It was-”

“Sonic, right?” Carl interrupted

The blue hedgehog nodded, curious.

“And you’re a kid, right?”

Sonic pouted, crossing his arms huffily. “I’m fifteen! More than just a kid!”

Carl chuckled. “You’re definitely more than just a kid, I’ll give you that. But you have nothing to apologize for.”

He gaped at the old man. “Nothing to apologize for?! But I’ve annoyed you for years! I stole from you!”

“To feed yourself. I don’t blame you, and what kind of person would I be if I did? You were a just a kid. How could I call myself a good person if I let a child starve when I had the ability to help?” Carl shook his head, taking a quick sip of his tea before continuing.

“Honestly, I started trying to hunt you down fo get you to pay. I think. My memory’s not what it used to be.” He chuckled. “But... eventually I ended up just trying to prove to everyone else that I wasn’t crazy. I haven’t cared that much about being repaid in years.”

The room was silent for a moment as Sonic processed everything Carl had just told him.

“Wow, and I thought I came here to apologize to you.”

Carl gave a wheezy laugh.

“Uh… Can I pay you back? I promised myself I would if I ever could. I don’t really have money, but I can do chores?”

The old grocer shook his head. “You don’t have to do that.”

Sonic fidgeted. “But I want to! I still feed bad for stealing.”

He considered this for a moment. “Then come over every once in a while. I get lonely, and I would appreciate the company. I’ll buy snacks.”

The alien’s eyes lit up at the mention of snacks. “Deal!” He grinned, awkwardly trying to shake Carl’s hand without knowing how to shake a hand. 

Carl gave the blue hedgehog a warm smile. “Oh, and Sonic?”

“Mm?” he asked around a forkful of cake.

“I don’t think I ever got a proper chance to say it all those years ago, but welcome to Green Hills.”

Sonic beamed.


	4. A fanfiction “oh” moment but it’s for realising how Fucked Up the plot is

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tom realises something about sonic and it affects him more than he thought it would  
> Word Count: 778  
> Date Posted: 2020-09-02

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ha HA i am not dead! Just struggling with executive dysfunction, lack of motivation, and energy. For me to make any content the stars have to line up and it sucks. I still have like 30 ideas and i AM going to finish them if it kills me i love this damn family so much  
> So i finally managedto get myself to MAKE something and all it took was adhd boredom from lack of stimulation! nevermind that its so short, its SOMETHING! Quality over quantity, right?

They’d been on the road for about 45 minutes, the bar where they (Sonic, mostly) had started a fight far behind them. The small blue creature was humming idly, kicking his legs as he started out the window and watched the trees go by. Meanwhile, Tom was still tense, hands tight around the wheel, head still throbbing from where he’d been cold-clocked. It wasn’t exactly an awkward silence, but it probably wasn’t the most amicable either.

Unclenching his jaw, Tom decided to finally break the silence. “All you had to do was stay in the car, yknow.”

“Huh?” Sonic asked, not looking up from his game. When did he snatch Tom’s phone?

The man reached a hand over, blindly grabbing for it. “No, c’mon, we-”

“Relax, Donut Lord, it’s still on airplane mode!” Sonic poked his tongue out childishly, grinning as he held the device away from Tom.

He still wasn’t sure if that was enough to keep the government from tracking them, but he backed off anyway. “Fine,” he conceded with a huff. “We’re trying to keep a low profile, though. So why didn’t- Why couldn’t-” He cut himself off, making a frustrated noise as he looked for the words.

To his credit, Sonic waited patiently as he looked for the right words, ears twisted in Tom’s direction. 

“Why couldn’t you just wait a few minutes?” 

Sonic shrugged, thumbs tapping away at the screen. “I hate being bored! It’s… Boring.” He snorted at his own joke, a cheeky grin working its way onto his face. “A growing boy can’t sit still, Donut Lord.”

Tom paused. “A growing boy? What are you, twelve?” He shot back. The man gave a chuckle, equal parts amused and nervous. He’d suspected Sonic was young, but there was something worse about knowing he was a child.

The hedgehog’s snout scrunched in annoyance. “Rude! I’m fifteen.” 

Oh.

_Oh._

Suddenly, Tom didn’t really feel like talking. Fifteen? He wasn’t even old enough to drive a car, and here he was being hunted down by the US government. That was so much weight to rest on his tiny shoulders. He should be worried about dating and exams and friends, not being examined in a lab and treated as a specimen for the rest of his life!

“Uh, Donut Lord?”

“Hm? Yeah?” Tom snapped out of his thoughts. 

“You all good? You kinda… Spaced out, there.” Sonic cocked his head at the human in concern, his phone (Tom’s, not Sonic’s) abandoned and game paused.

God, this kid was dealing with so much and he was still able to be concerned for him.

“Yeah… Yeah, I’m good. Just… Thinking,” He replied numbly, mouth moving on autopilot. 

“Well don’t think too hard,” The hedgehog joked, trying to lighten the suddenly tense atmosphere. Or maybe that was just him? Tom gave a chuckle at that, only slightly forced.

“Alright, alright. Go back to your game.”

Sonic’s cheer and beaming face were definitely worth letting him run his phone down.

~~~~~

After such a hectic evening, Sonic had conked out almost immediately after lying down. Tom gave the kid a fond smile, watching him curl in on himself as he got comfortable and drifted into a deep, restorative sleep.

The man frowned for a second. He _really_ hoped that the blue hedgehog hadn’t just been sleeping in the woods before this. At very least, the thought made the sight of him curling up for warmth and safety a lot more bittersweet. 

Tom reached over, pulling the covers over the boy, hoping it wasn’t the first (and last) proper bed he’d ever slept in. His eyes flickered over the bucket list he’d written up, his heart doing a painful little squeeze at the only item that wasn’t crossed off.

“Make a real friend”

God, he really wished that he could have a life on Earth. The poor boy deserved that much, at least. Not… This. 

Damnit, when did he get so attached to the little blue alien? It wasn’t like he’d be able to see him again after this. Letting him go was going to hurt, but… He needed to be safe more than Tom needed to. Well. He wasn’t quite sure, actually. Take care of him? Give him the love and familiar affection he’d been craving? Emotions were confusing, sometimes.

“...Tom Wachowski, accused of committing an act of domestic terrorism.” The TV chattered, pulling his attention away from the small alien. He listened for a few seconds longer before glancing back at Sonic.

He set his jaw in determination. Well, if this is the price he was going to pay for protecting an innocent child, he’d pay it ten times over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally they were gonna have an argument but the scene that this comes after more ended with the impression that Tom is more exasperated than actually angry, and realises that Sonic is immature and/or young so this fits better with the movie. It ended up. a bit angstier than i wanted but its still soft! right?
> 
> it's not the sonic discord i mentioned earlier, but if anyone wants to come bug me I have a small server set up for streaming my art stuff and you can come talk to me there! Maybe bug me into working dfgsdfg https://discord.gg/38vcsbg


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